The document discusses social spaces for hotels and the importance of claiming them online. It notes that over 114 million Americans will research travel online in 2011. Social media sites like Google Places, TripAdvisor, Yelp and Facebook Places allow hotels to directly communicate with customers and see what is being said about them. The document provides tips for hotels to create a game plan for managing their social spaces online, including setting up a shared email account, designating staff responsibilities, encouraging but not demanding reviews from customers, and responding to reviews gracefully.

1. Claiming social
spaces
FMCVB hotel partners
Oct 4, 2011

2. What are “social spaces”?

3. Social spaces represent physical locaAons.
People can add raAngs, reviews, and conversaAons.

4. Social spaces for hotels
• More than 114 million Americans will research travel online in
2011, and 94 million will book online (Hotel Marke,ng, April
2011)
• Sites like Google Places, Trip Advisor, Yelp, and Facebook
Places improve search opAmizaAon and allow you to directly
talk with customers
• Maybe most importantly…

5. Know what’s being said…

6. …and join the conversaAon

7. Before you get started

8. Create a game plan
• Accessibility
– Use a shared or neutral email account, not a personal
one
– Consider seVng up a Gmail or another shared email
address that can be forwarded to mulAple people
• Responsibility
– Who will monitor on an ongoing basis?
– Who decides which reviews are responded to?
– Who is in charge of updaAng photos every 3‐6
months?

9. Encourage reviews
• Encourage, but don’t ask for
reviews
– “Check us out on…” works
beer than “Write a review
on…”
– Include URLs in follow‐up
emails or on receipts
– Signs or cards in lobby
– Focus on one space, or
encourage them to use the
space of their choice
• Remember that reviews
from your lobby computer
may get flagged

10. Respond to reviews gracefully